laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

a

: a room for doing the family wash

b

: a commercial laundering establishment

2

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

Examples of laundry in a Sentence

There's a pile of dirty laundry in the laundry basket.

The patients' sheets are sent regularly to the hospital laundry.

Recent Examples on the Web

As the city grew around it, tenants included a laundry, decades of fur dealers, and a stationery shop. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 10 Mar. 2026

No stripping the bed, no laundry and no wrestling with corners at 2 AM. —Tory Johnson, ABC News, 10 Mar. 2026

Meanwhile, Penn wakes up four hours preflight, works out, does laundry, gets gas (and gas station hot dogs) and boards last. —The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026

Yes, your house is a mess, the laundry's piled up, and the dog needs to be walked. —Barrie Gillies, Parents, 9 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing laundry

• air one's dirty laundry
• dirty laundry
• do the/one's laundry
• laundry list
• load of laundry

Kids Definition

laundry

noun

laun·​dry ˈlȯn-drē 

ˈlän-

plural laundries

1

: clothes or linens that have been or are to be laundered

2

: a place where laundering is done

Etymology

from an obsolete word launder (noun) "one who washes clothes," derived from early French lavandier (or lavandiere) "a man (or woman) who washes clothes," from Latin lavandus "needing to be washed," from lavare "to wash" — related to lavatory, lavish, lotion